Rumors Strike Back: The Men That May Be Kaneda and Tetsuo in the ‘Akira’ Live Action Film

22 March 2011 Eric Kwun | Posted in: Current Events, Watch It!

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Whoa. This is crazy. A while back, Warner Bros. and Legendary Picture hired writer, Steve Kloves to rewrite the script for a live action adaptation of Katsuhiro Otomo’s six volume epic, ‘Akira’. Kloves is the golden child for Warner and he was the writer behind all the ‘Harry Potter’ films and Marc Webb’s ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’. Well, it looks like the studio brass and director Albert Hughes of the Hughes Brothers (The Book of Eli) are really diggin’ the rewrite because the studio sent the script to a small group of actors for the lead roles of Kaneda and Tetsuo. Out of the group that was sent the script, insider sources believe that the leads will be cast from this small group. The actors considered are as follows:

Kaneda – Garrett Hedlund (TRON: Legacy), Michael Fassbender (X-Men: First Class), Justin Timberlake (Social Network), Chris Pine (Star Trek), and Joaquin Phoenix (Walk the Line)

Tetsuo – Robert Pattinson (The Twilight Saga), Andrew Garfield (The Amazing Spider-Man), James McAvoy (X-Men: First Class)

Out of this group of actors, I would have to go with Michael Fassbender as Kaneda and James McAvoy as Tetsuo. Is that odd? Fassbender and McAvoy already teamed up as Professor Xavier and Magneto in Matthew Vaughn’s ‘X-Men: First Class’ and from what I have seen, they seem to have chemistry on screen. The biggest busts in the group as to be Garrett Hedlund, Chris Pine, Justin Timberlake, and Robert Pattinson. Each of these actors are tested and capable actors, but I just don’t see these four be able to carry this movie. However, I can be wrong. Even though I like the pair of Fassbender and McAvoy, I doubt its going to happen.

Even though all these actors are being considered, we may never know who else might join the mix. Its going to be interesting as Akira is a high priority project for Warner Bros. and the studio is looking to fast-track the project to start filming in August 2011. The urgency may be because Warner Bros and Legendary dropped a seven-figure sum to Kodansha for the rights for this film over two years ago. Now, with a satisfactory script, a willing director, and casting underway, it looks like Akira is coming together. Akira will be produced by Andrew Lazar and Appian Way’s Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Davisson Killoran. The studio is planning to make Akira into a two-part film, each film covering three volumes of the six volume manga series. If Warner Bros. is able to get filming by the end of summer, we might see it open during the holidays in 2012. However, there is no word on whether the movies will be filmed back-to-back or not.

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Kaneda Shotaro and His Bike Never Looked So Good!

6 November 2009 Eric Kwun | Posted in: I Heart Toys

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If you are an fan of Japanese animation (anime), then you may have heard of Akira. Originally released in 1988, Akira was an animated movie that has a huge cult following. Many anime fans and critics believe that Akira was ahead of its time when it came to animation technique and story telling. Originally, a graphic novel by Katsuhiro Otomo (who later co-wrote and directed the animated movie), Akira takes place in the future in a post-war city called Neo-Tokyo in the year 2019.

One of the most famous characters from Akira is Kaneda Shotaro, who was the main protagonist in the story. Kaneda was the leader of a biker gang called the Capsules and he rode one of the most beloved sci-fi vehicles of all time which was a futuristic heavily modified custom red motorcycle. Over the years, many toy designer/manufacturers such as McFarlane Toys have attempted to produce cool toys of Kaneda and his bike with very little success. No offense to the earlier released Akira toys, but the scale and designs of these toys did little justice for the brilliant designs by Katsuhiro Otomo. This is all about to change.

Newcomer high end collectible giants, Project BM! (a division of Bandai Japan) will be releasing a two new collectibles that will make you wet your pants. Project BM! will release a 12 inch Kaneda Shotaro figure and a ultra deluxe die-cast bike. The Kaneda figure is your basic 12 inch figure that we usually see from companies such as Medicom Toys and Hot Toys, but the real gem of is Kaneda’s bike. This beautiful vehicle comes equipped with LED lights and sound effects. Holy SHIT!

This die-cast metal vehicle replica is complete with LED light-up features, including front and back wheels, headlights, taillights, blinker, and dashboard, as well as sound effects, including engine start, rev, tires, drift and drive. The headlights can be adjusted to move up and down, and the front can be raised and lowered to simulate park and drive modes. The model has three power levels – off, lights only, and lights with sound, and has full, workable suspension created under cowling. (Requires 4 AAA batteries, not included.) The fully detailed Kaneda’s Bike Die-cast Model is the perfect companion to the Shotaro Kaneda 12-inch Figure, an outstanding pair for any collection.

Akira fans, new and old have been waiting over a decade for a collectible like this. Thanks for Project BM!, our wishes came true. So sick.

Hit the jump to check out close ups of Kaneda and his bitchin’ bike.

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